Fish and Chips anyone?

[Merlin]

One of my more enjoyable foods from the UK that I miss here are decent fish and chips.

The soft white texture of pangasius, dory, or basa (call it what you like, it's all the same flabby stuff) doesn't make for a decent battered fillet in the way that cod or haddock does, even though I will eat it at a push.

Enter a recent dinner at the Aussie Bar on soi cola. I ordered their fish and chips more in hope than confidence, but was delighted to be served with decent sized fillets in a crispy coating. The fish was barramundi, familiar to Aussie readers, also known here as sea-bass. It is a round fish and has a great taste with excellent texture, meaty and firm fleshed.

It was served with plenty of chips, and a salad too.

Seconds anyone?

 

[CO-CO]

One of my more enjoyable foods from the UK that I miss here are decent fish and chips.

The soft white texture of pangasius, dory, or basa (call it what you like, it's all the same flabby stuff) doesn't make for a decent battered fillet in the way that cod or haddock does, even though I will eat it at a push.

Enter a recent dinner at the Aussie Bar on soi cola. I ordered their fish and chips more in hope than confidence, but was delighted to be served with decent sized fillets in a crispy coating. The fish was barramundi, familiar to Aussie readers, also known here as sea-bass. It is a round fish and has a great taste with excellent texture, meaty and firm fleshed.

It was served with plenty of chips, and a salad too.

Seconds anyone?

Picture?


(otherwise it didn't happen..... )

 

[Merlin]

Picture?


(otherwise it didn't happen..... )

I ate it faster than the shutter could fire!

 

[Croc]

I ate it faster than the shutter could fire!

Indeed, you did !!!

 

[Ivor the Engine]

Indeed, you did !!!

And we were more interested in the beer & ladies!

 

[FERRET]

One of my more enjoyable foods from the UK that I miss here are decent fish and chips.

The soft white texture of pangasius, dory, or basa (call it what you like, it's all the same flabby stuff) doesn't make for a decent battered fillet in the way that cod or haddock does, even though I will eat it at a push.

Enter a recent dinner at the Aussie Bar on soi cola. I ordered their fish and chips more in hope than confidence, but was delighted to be served with decent sized fillets in a crispy coating. The fish was barramundi, familiar to Aussie readers, also known here as sea-bass. It is a round fish and has a great taste with excellent texture, meaty and firm fleshed.

It was served with plenty of chips, and a salad too.

Seconds anyone?

Barra is good however, Spanish mackeral was my choice for crispy fish and chips.

 

[gotlost]

 

[DailyLunatic]

One of my more enjoyable foods from the UK that I miss here are decent fish and chips.

The soft white texture of pangasius, dory, or basa (call it what you like, it's all the same flabby stuff) doesn't make for a decent battered fillet in the way that cod or haddock does, even though I will eat it at a push.

Enter a recent dinner at the Aussie Bar on soi cola. I ordered their fish and chips more in hope than confidence, but was delighted to be served with decent sized fillets in a crispy coating. The fish was barramundi, familiar to Aussie readers, also known here as sea-bass. It is a round fish and has a great taste with excellent texture, meaty and firm fleshed.

It was served with plenty of chips, and a salad too.

Seconds anyone?

I understand your pain. I'm a good-'ol southern boy (southern US anyways), and I love me some Fried Catfish. (Cornmeal Breading, Thank you)

Pangasius 'looks' right, and the taste is okay, but the texture is way mushy. Thought I'd gotten an old piece (frozen) the first few times I prepared. Then worked with a live fish and had the same texture.

Cod and Haddock, even Barramundi, I can find in Makro, but Catfish always ends up being Pangasius. (Yes, I understand, but the US makes a distinction.)

When I was in Oz back in '99 I enjoyed the Barramundi -a lot. I asked about it, and had been told that they did not export Barramundi. I wonder if the export ban was lifted, if it was just a ban to the US, or if I was mis-informed.

I will be looking for Aussie Bar on Soi Kola next time I am there. Thank you.

-sterling

 

[Cent]

I understand your pain. I'm a good-'ol southern boy (southern US anyways), and I love me some Fried Catfish. (Cornmeal Breading, Thank you)

Pangasius 'looks' right, and the taste is okay, but the texture is way mushy. Thought I'd gotten an old piece (frozen) the first few times I prepared. Then worked with a live fish and had the same texture.

Cod and Haddock, even Barramundi, I can find in Makro, but Catfish always ends up being Pangasius. (Yes, I understand, but the US makes a distinction.)

When I was in Oz back in '99 I enjoyed the Barramundi -a lot. I asked about it, and had been told that they did not export Barramundi. I wonder if the export ban was lifted, if it was just a ban to the US, or if I was mis-informed.

I will be looking for Aussie Bar on Soi Kola next time I am there. Thank you.

-sterling

I like Haddock myself. Or Rock Cod. I also like a fried Flounder filet as well. The difference is they are cold salt water fish. Much firmer flesh. And yes, catfish in the states is different than the fresh water Pangasius you get here. Up north we call it 'Horned Pout'. The water is usually a lot colder in our lakes and ponds than you find here.

 

[Cent]

I understand your pain. I'm a good-'ol southern boy (southern US anyways), and I love me some Fried Catfish. (Cornmeal Breading, Thank you)

Pangasius 'looks' right, and the taste is okay, but the texture is way mushy. Thought I'd gotten an old piece (frozen) the first few times I prepared. Then worked with a live fish and had the same texture.

Cod and Haddock, even Barramundi, I can find in Makro, but Catfish always ends up being Pangasius. (Yes, I understand, but the US makes a distinction.)

When I was in Oz back in '99 I enjoyed the Barramundi -a lot. I asked about it, and had been told that they did not export Barramundi. I wonder if the export ban was lifted, if it was just a ban to the US, or if I was mis-informed.

I will be looking for Aussie Bar on Soi Kola next time I am there. Thank you.

-sterling

I find the saltwater flounder you find here in Thailand also is not the same taste and texture as what we catch in the Atlantic Ocean in New England. Again I attribute it to the water temperature. You see whole flounder cooked on charcoal BBQ wrapped in tinfoil all over the place here sold on the streets.

 

[Rice]

When I was in Oz back in '99 I enjoyed the Barramundi -a lot. I asked about it, and had been told that they did not export Barramundi. I wonder if the export ban was lifted, if it was just a ban to the US, or if I was mis-informed.

There is a small story to this. 90% of all Barramundi sold in Australia is fake! So the US and other countries after testing found all exported Barramundi was fake as well.
So they stopped importing it. Farming Barramundi is now a thing and "Real" Barramundi is now exported albeit being farmed. It tastes a little different from wild.
Incidentally the largest farm in the NT is owned by a good friend of mine. All real wild Barramundi comes from the NT.
Locals to the NT find Barra a bit blase. The fish of choice of locals is Golden Snapper.
PS
90% of Barramundi is still sold fake in Australia. If you ate it in Australia and not in Darwin. it was most likely fake.
Been a lot of noise on the issue but nothing has ever been done.

DNA tests suggest more than 10% of seafood sold in Australia not what’s on the label

National study found shark and snapper species, and imported seafood, were most likely to be incorrectly labelled

www.theguardian.com

That did not take much searching.

 

[FERRET]

There is a small story to this. 90% of all Barramundi sold in Australia is fake! So the US and other countries after testing found all exported Barramundi was fake as well.
So they stopped importing it. Farming Barramundi is now a thing and "Real" Barramundi is now exported albeit being farmed. It tastes a little different from wild.
Incidentally the largest farm in the NT is owned by a good friend of mine. All real wild Barramundi comes from the NT.
Locals to the NT find Barra a bit blase. The fish of choice of locals is Golden Snapper.
PS
90% of Barramundi is still sold fake in Australia. If you ate it in Australia and not in Darwin. it was most likely fake.
Been a lot of noise on the issue but nothing has ever been done.

DNA tests suggest more than 10% of seafood sold in Australia not what’s on the label

National study found shark and snapper species, and imported seafood, were most likely to be incorrectly labelled

www.theguardian.com

That did not take much searching.

Amazing FFS however, the Barra we enjoyed in the NT was always caught wild in a couple hotspots on the mainland, good crabbing as well
and heaps of snapping hand bags--crocs.

 

[DailyLunatic]

There is a small story to this. 90% of all Barramundi sold in Australia is fake! So the US and other countries after testing found all exported Barramundi was fake as well.
So they stopped importing it. Farming Barramundi is now a thing and "Real" Barramundi is now exported albeit being farmed. It tastes a little different from wild.
Incidentally the largest farm in the NT is owned by a good friend of mine. All real wild Barramundi comes from the NT.
Locals to the NT find Barra a bit blase. The fish of choice of locals is Golden Snapper.
PS
90% of Barramundi is still sold fake in Australia. If you ate it in Australia and not in Darwin. it was most likely fake.
Been a lot of noise on the issue but nothing has ever been done.

DNA tests suggest more than 10% of seafood sold in Australia not what’s on the label

National study found shark and snapper species, and imported seafood, were most likely to be incorrectly labelled

www.theguardian.com

That did not take much searching.

Dunno. It was a small 8 table, open air, restaurant in Cairns Australia, 1999. Hoity toity place where the owner cooked at the table in his black strait jacket tux. Donning a fresh white apron before each time.

Whatever the fish was, it was delicious. Had it prepared three different ways while I was there. Let me know what it likely was and I'll start hunting it down.

-sterling

 

[Rice]

Dunno. It was a small 8 table, open air, restaurant in Cairns Australia, 1999. Hoity toity place where the owner cooked at the table in his black strait jacket tux. Donning a fresh white apron before each time.

Whatever the fish was, it was delicious. Had it prepared three different ways while I was there. Let me know what it likely was and I'll start hunting it down.

-sterling

Cairns increases your odds quite a lot of it being the real deal. If it was a big capital city it would be definitely fake.

 

[DailyLunatic]

And yes, catfish in the states is different than the fresh water Pangasius you get here. Up north we call it 'Horned Pout'. The water is usually a lot colder in our lakes and ponds than you find here.

I know there are a Ka jillion different species of Catfish. So don't take any of what I am saying here as me attempting to correct the usage of the generic term 'catfish'.

However, back in the day, China was killing it on the US imported fish market. As a result the US passed a law so that to be sold as 'catfish' in the US, it has to be either Blue or Channel Cat. I may be fuzzy on the exact names under the law. My point is that to someone from the US, 'catfish' is something very specific.

At my local markets in the US Pangasius was sold as Swai (there are lots of other names as well) and I found it to have the same mushy texture there as here.

-sterling

 

[gotlost]

 

[Youngagain]

He looks a bit battered.

 

[FERRET]

He looks a bit battered.

He looks to be fin-ished.

 

[Youngagain]

He looks to be fin-ished.

Well done!